Photo by: Greg Anderson
Rettke named AVCA Northeast Region Freshman of the Year
December 05, 2017 | Volleyball
Rettke, Williams and Hilley earn all-region honors
MADISON, Wis. — The awards keep rolling in for Wisconsin volleyball's Dana Rettke. After being named the Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year, the 6-foot-8 middle blocker was named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Northeast Region Freshman of the Year.
Rettke was also named to the all-region team. Junior Tionna Williams earns her second-straight first-team all-region award while freshman Sydney Hilley earned honorable mention accolades.
Rettke becomes the third-straight Badger and the fourth overall to earn the rookie honor, following teammates Molly Haggerty, who was honored in 2016, and Williams, who received the award in 2015.
On the season, Rettke leads the Badgers and ranks second in the Big Ten with a .446 hitting percentage. She also leads the team and ranks 11th in the conference with 3.43 kills per set. The freshman has a team-best 1.40 blocks per set, which ranks third in the Big Ten. Rettke also shares the team lead with 25 service aces (0.23 per set).
Williams, a 6-2 middle blocker, ranks second on the Badgers and fourth in the Big Ten with a .390 hitting percentage. A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Williams is also second on the team with 1.01 blocks per set while adding 2.45 kills per set.
A 6-0 setter, Hilley ranks second in the Big Ten with 11.76 assists per set. She shares the team lead with 25 service aces this season while adding 2.06 digs, 0.68 kills and 0.65 blocks per set.
All three Badgers are now eligible for AVCA All-America honors which will be announced on Dec. 13.
For the fifth-straight season, the Badgers will compete in the regional round of the NCAA championship. Wisconsin will compete in the Stanford Regional at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, California, on Friday-Saturday.
No. 6 Texas (26-2) takes on No. 11 Utah (24-9) in the first regional semifinal on Friday at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN3. Unseeded Wisconsin (22-9) faces No. 3 Stanford (28-3) in the second regional semifinal at 10 p.m. on ESPNU. Semifinal winners advance to the regional final on Saturday at 9 p.m. live on ESPNU.
Player of the Year: Simone Lee, Penn State, OH
Freshman of the Year: Dana Rettke, Wisconsin, MB
Coach of the Year: Russ Rose, Penn State
* Denotes total number of years selected to AVCA Division I All-Region Team
Rettke was also named to the all-region team. Junior Tionna Williams earns her second-straight first-team all-region award while freshman Sydney Hilley earned honorable mention accolades.
Rettke becomes the third-straight Badger and the fourth overall to earn the rookie honor, following teammates Molly Haggerty, who was honored in 2016, and Williams, who received the award in 2015.
On the season, Rettke leads the Badgers and ranks second in the Big Ten with a .446 hitting percentage. She also leads the team and ranks 11th in the conference with 3.43 kills per set. The freshman has a team-best 1.40 blocks per set, which ranks third in the Big Ten. Rettke also shares the team lead with 25 service aces (0.23 per set).
Williams, a 6-2 middle blocker, ranks second on the Badgers and fourth in the Big Ten with a .390 hitting percentage. A native of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Williams is also second on the team with 1.01 blocks per set while adding 2.45 kills per set.
A 6-0 setter, Hilley ranks second in the Big Ten with 11.76 assists per set. She shares the team lead with 25 service aces this season while adding 2.06 digs, 0.68 kills and 0.65 blocks per set.
All three Badgers are now eligible for AVCA All-America honors which will be announced on Dec. 13.
For the fifth-straight season, the Badgers will compete in the regional round of the NCAA championship. Wisconsin will compete in the Stanford Regional at Maples Pavilion in Stanford, California, on Friday-Saturday.
No. 6 Texas (26-2) takes on No. 11 Utah (24-9) in the first regional semifinal on Friday at 8 p.m. CT on ESPN3. Unseeded Wisconsin (22-9) faces No. 3 Stanford (28-3) in the second regional semifinal at 10 p.m. on ESPNU. Semifinal winners advance to the regional final on Saturday at 9 p.m. live on ESPNU.
| AVCA Northeast All-Region | ||||
| Sherridan | Atkinson | Purdue | RS | RS-Jr. |
| Ali | Bastianelli** | Illinois | MB | Jr. |
| Danielle | Cuttino*** | Purdue | MB/OH | Sr. |
| Ashley | Evans | Purdue | S | RS-Sr. |
| Ali | Frantti*** | Penn State | OH | Sr. |
| Simone | Lee** | Penn State | OH | Sr. |
| Jordyn | Poulter** | Illinois | S | Jr. |
| Dana | Rettke | Wisconsin | MB | Fr. |
| Kallie | Seimet | Bowling Green | L | Jr. |
| Heidi | Thelen | Penn State | RS | Sr. |
| Haleigh | Washington*** | Penn State | MB | Sr. |
| Ashley | Wenz | Ohio State | OH | Sr. |
| Kendall | White | Penn State | L | So. |
| Tionna | Williams** | Wisconsin | MB | Jr. |
| Honorable Mention | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abby | Detering | Penn State | S/H | Sr. |
| Sydney | Hilley | Wisconsin | S | Fr. |
| Gina | Kilner | Cleveland St. | S | Sr. |
| Maggie | O'Connell | Princeton | RS | So. |
| Luisa | Schirmer | Ohio State | OH | Sr. |
| Azariah | Stahl | Purdue | OH | Sr. |
Player of the Year: Simone Lee, Penn State, OH
Freshman of the Year: Dana Rettke, Wisconsin, MB
Coach of the Year: Russ Rose, Penn State
* Denotes total number of years selected to AVCA Division I All-Region Team
Players Mentioned
OH
/ Volleyball
S
/ Volleyball
MB
/ Volleyball
MB
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